


Eddie My Love

by AnarchyIsFreedom



Series: Mutually Pining Reddie [2]
Category: IT (2017), IT (2019), IT - Stephen King, It - All Media Types
Genre: Almost Kiss, Author Is Sleep Deprived, But They Get Close, Canon Compliant, Crushes, Eddie Kaspbrak Loves Richie Tozier, Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier In Love, Gay Eddie Kaspbrak, Gay Richie Tozier, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Internalized Homophobia, It's 3 in the morning, M/M, Marijuana, Mutual Pining, Oblivious Eddie Kaspbrak, Oblivious Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, Recreational Drug Use, Richie Tozier & Stanley Uris Are Best Friends, Richie Tozier Loves Eddie Kaspbrak, Shotgunning, Spoiler Alert They Don't Get Together, because y'know, it's canon compliant
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-04
Updated: 2019-10-04
Packaged: 2020-11-23 10:13:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20890433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnarchyIsFreedom/pseuds/AnarchyIsFreedom
Summary: Richie wants to tell Eddie how he feels but he doesn't know how. He thinks he found a clever way of confessing but Ed's dense and scared. Hopefully ganja will help put them both at ease.(If you're reading this in the series, this is after Richie comes out to Stan. If you're not, just know that Stan is the only one who knows that Richie's gay)





	Eddie My Love

**Author's Note:**

> A few people wanted me to continue "It's Okay To Be You" but I wanted that story to just be Richie and Stan's friendship and it was basically a vent about growing up with my family. But I was listening to Eddie My Love by The Teen Queens and this popped into my head. So here we are, three hours later. I hope you enjoy it.

Eddie was all but shoved into the Loser’s clubhouse. He scrambled to get his footing on the ladder as he was rushed down. 

“I’m going as fast as I can, Jesus. Quit fucking rushing me.” He called to his friend who basically jumped down the hole after him. 

“Vamonos Eds. Vamonos.” Richie said, in his best -but still horribly incorrect- spanish accent. “I have something to show you before the others get here.”

“Yeah, I know, that’s why you’re forcing me to ditch last period, douchenozzle.” He rolled his eyes as he followed his friend to the shitty record player in the corner.

“Incorrect! What you actually mean is ‘ _ that’s why I agreed to skip the second half of last period, to spend time with my devilishly handsome friend. _ ’” Richie grinned as he pulled out a record from his backpack.

Eddie could feel his face getting hotter. Richie had taken him away from school to sneak into a private place and put on an old song. It felt like the kind of moment the hero and his love interest would share in a movie. But that isn’t happening now. Obviously. The love interest is never another guy. Life doesn’t work like that. And he wouldn’t want it to anyways, they’re friends. Just friends. There’s nothing else they could be.

“Why are you even playing a record? Walkmans exist for a reason.”

“It’s an old song and I’m gonna play it the way it was meant to be played. Besides, ~there’s just something so romantic about records~” He wanted to comment on the -also horrible- impression of a girl’s voice, but he couldn’t when the taller boy turned to look at him with that stupid, beautiful, grin.

He settled on an unamused stare instead, hoping his face would be better at concealing his emotions than his blossoming blush. ‘Romantic’ huh? The thought gave him butterflies. He couldn’t help but imagine him playing some cheesy song like Elvis’ “Can’t Help Falling in Love” and taking his hand gently, leading into slow dancing. Maybe he’d play the Inkspots and cup his cheek, telling Eddie how much he cared about him. Or it could be Sinatra-

The sound of the sax brought him out of his thoughts. He didn’t recognize the beginning, but he instantly pegged it as a doowop. 

“Eddie my lo-ove, I love you so~” Richie’s face was bright red as he sung along to the music, making big, overexaggerated motions, “How I wanted for you, you’ll never know~ Please Eddie, don’t make me wait too long~”

The short boy pushed him away, “Beep beep Richie.” He muttered and turned around, not able to keep his lips in a frown. Richie was singing to him. A love song. A love song about someone named Eddie. His heart beat fast, the drumming of his heart filling his ears.  


“Eds,” 

He waited for the rest of the sentence, but nothing else came. The music was the only noise in the otherwise dead quiet room. 

“It uh,” He tried to glance discreetly over his shoulder, relaxing slightly upon noticing that Richie was looking away, “It doesn’t have to be a joke.”

Eddie turned around immediately, scanning the other boy’s face, looking for the punchline. When he couldn’t find it, he stepped forward, reaching his hand out slightly, desperate to move the curls away from Richie’s eyes.

But what if it really was a joke? What if this was just some elaborate prank. He knows Rich wouldn’t want to actually hurt anybody but this is different. Boys aren’t supposed to like boys, his ma had told him so a hundred times. Of course he wouldn’t think this sort of thing would hurt any guy, because it shouldn’t. He stopped moving his arm. One more chance, if ‘Chie really liked him back then he’d push on, right? And if he doesn’t, well, Eddie wouldn’t let him know how painful the joke was. 

He pushed the boy’s shoulder, “I’m serious. Quit messing around.” He tried to scoff.

Richie was silent for a brief moment, his eyebrows furrowed as he glanced around Eddie’s face. He quickly pulled his mouth into a giant smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes. He walked past him, jumping into the hammock, “Can’t help it, Eds. It’s in my nature,” He put on an over-the-top voice of what Eddie can only assume is supposed to be a 50’s game show host, “ I-am  _ the- _ trashmouth afterall.” 

He couldn’t help but be disappointed. He had thought that maybe, just maybe, he wasn’t the only freak in town. Maybe he wouldn’t have to feel like such an outsider. Maybe he wasn’t a mistake.

He sighed and stopped the music resonating from the record player, slipping the record back into its case and then Rich’s bag. He stood silently, expecting to hear his friend chatter about nothing, but instead found him laying quietly with his arms covering his face. When the obnoxious -and not cute at all- voice didn’t come he walked over to the hammock, hesitating before joining the other boy.

Richie’s previously closed eyes opened and he shot up. He fumbled trying to get out, almost falling on his face in the process. 

Eddie tightened his brows and bit the inside of his lip. Now Rich didn’t even want to touch him? Had he been too obvious in his facial expressions? Had his wavering voice given away his hopefulness? 

The boy hurried off the floor, dusting his pants off, “Bev, uh, Bev left some magic leaves, right? The happy flower? The _ jazz cigarette _ , if you will?” He shook his hands in the air before moving to the small jar next to the entrance.

“Only one of those was a real term, dumbass.” He tried to sound annoyed and not heartbroken, he really did, “But I hope so, I need a hit too.”

Rich looked surprised but he didn’t say anything. Eddie didn’t often smoke, it was a rare occurrence but it did happen. Usually it would be with the rest of the Losers before they played some party game. 

He closed his eyes and rubbed his face. He smelled it as soon as the jar was opened, but he didn’t look. He heard the flick of a lighter but the smell didn’t get any stronger. He waited and didn’t hear an inhale or exhale. He cracked an eye open and saw Richie staring at the joint in his hand.

“‘Chie?” He cocked an eyebrow and moved his head to the side.

Said boy turned his head with a jump and flushed red before smiling sheepishly, “I was just thinking, there’s something I’ve been wanting to try for a while… I was gonna ask your mom last night but I don’t think she’d be into the ‘ _ oooh spooooooky devil’s lettuce.’ _ ” 

“Funny, I don’t remember you coming over yesterday. Must’ve been when I was busy playing tonsil hockey with your sister.” Rich’s eyes squinted slightly at that, his jaw moving to the right.

“Well, maybe you should shotgun smoke with her then.”

“What?”

“Shotgun. It’s where someone puff-puffs on the sweet, lovely, Mary J and then blows the smoke into someone else's' mouth.” 

He tries to suppress his rising blush and bites his cheek, “Dude, shut up. You sound like an undercover cop or some shit.”

“Oh jeez. No way, no sir. I’m always the first to bong the wacky tobacky.”

He laughed, feeling much less on edge, “Was that supposed to be Canadian? Isn’t it decriminalized up there anyways?”

Richie smiled, a small but genuine smile, “You wound me, Edward! That was very clearly a Minnesoten accent. It was spot on!”

More laughs followed, “Yeah sure, keep telling yourself that. And don’t call me Edward! It’s Eddie.” He tried to keep an angry face but looking at the other boy’s smile made it impossible. 

“Yeah yeah,” His face lost the playfulness, the smile still there but his eyebrows and eyes were much softer, “So, uh, do you… do you want to try?”

The laughter stopped, “I, uh, you want to shotgun smoke… with me?” A slight nod was the only answer he got, he waited but no other words came out. Fine, if Rich didn’t want to use his words than he wouldn’t either. That is why Eddie only nodded in response. That is the only reason, he certainly would be able to if he wanted to. But he didn’t want to.

Rich’s eyes lit up as he lit the joint, quickly inhaling from the other end as he hurried to the side of the hammock. He used his free hand to cup Eddie’s cheek, bringing their faces close together, their lips close but not too close. He barely held the smoke in his lungs before releasing it into Ed’s mouth. 

He breathed in deeply, telling himself it was for the smoke. He was most certainly NOT trying to breathe in Richie. That would be weird. It was for the high, that’s it. He held it in his chest for as long as he could manage, letting it out slowly when it got to be too much.

The taller boy didn’t move away, instead he inched forward incredibly slowly, giving Eddie the chance to back out.

His eyes widened as he realized what was happening, the thumb on his cheek gently moving back and forth. He started to close his eyes, leaning in just a bit more. He could faintly feel the tickle on his lips, letting him know they were so, so close to meeting.

The sound of the entrance hatch opening made them fly apart, Richie tried to look cool while leaning against the post next to him. Eddie all but launched himself on his stomach, placing his head on the other side of the hammock and making their faces as far away as they could with their limited time.

“Th-th-th-there you guys are. We were wuh-wuh-worried until we saw yo-your bikes out here.” Bill was the first one to descend into the clubhouse, the others filing in after him.

“Y-Yep! Here we are. Hanging out. Chillin. Like bros do. Smokin that reefer. Like bros.” The group gives Rich questioning faces but don’t say anything.  


Stan looks at Richie, then Eddie, then back to Richie. They stare into each other’s eyes for longer than normal, at least, Eddie would assume as much. He doesn’t watch Richie. That would be weird. And he already said, he is not weird. Not weird at all. But they’re staring long enough to be noticeable. Ed wonders for a moment if they’re having a conversation in their minds. 

Sometimes it feels like he can do that with Chie, making plans without any verbal conversation needed. They’ll all be running around in the woods and he and Richie will make eye contact for a brief minute before running off to mess around in a nearby clearing, close enough to still be with the others but far away enough to feel personal. Or the group will be at the park and the two will unanimously look at each other and instantly leave to get ice cream. Sometimes they see each other in the halls and just know that as soon as school gets out they’re going to the arcade.

But now he’s doing it with Stan. Now it doesn’t feel as special. Now he wants to say something to make Rich look at him and only him. But he’s not jealous. He has nothing to be jealous of. They’re all friends.

Bev walked over to Richie, taking the joint from him, “O…..kay. If you losers are done being weird, let’s finish this and head to the quarry.” 

Eddie made sure to avoid Richie for the rest of the day, he was messing with his head. He didn’t want to be sick, and Rich was only making it worse.

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked it let me know! And if you didn't, please tell me how I can improve! Actually, even if you liked it, please tell me how it could be better. I reread it and fixed a lot of mistakes but it's three in the morning and I need to sleep so I probably missed a bunch.


End file.
